Hello, Clive here,

As you may know, I am a supporter of continual learning - sometimes referred to as lifelong learning.

I met someone who inspired me last week. I was on a train travelling via Birmingham. Sat opposite me was a gentleman. For most of the journey I was absorbed in reading some papers. About fifteen minutes before we arrived at our destination my fellow traveller and I struck up a conversation. I’ll call him Ron. Ron told me that he was on his way to University of Birmingham for a lecture. The question that came into my mind when he said this was what subject he was lecturing on. Before I could embarrass myself by articulating what I was thinking, he went on to tell me how much he was enjoying being a student. He was studying towards a Masters Degree in History. His specific area of focus was the West Midlands. I can hear you ask why one might chose such a focus area. He was fascinated by it.

I was inspired when he revealed his age. He was 68 and enjoying every minute. He said that he’ll be 71 by the time he finishes. Friends and acquaintances have been asking whether he might go on and do a Doctorate afterwards. His response has been that he will probably need a doctor rather than study towards one.It was great to see that despite retiring eight years prior, and living on a Saturday, his youthful mind was still urging him to engage in intellectual stimulation.

Let me explain the Saturday part. Some time ago I attended a workshop that encouraged the participants to seize the moment at every opportunity and stage of life. The tutor then presented the following model about various stages of life to prompt group discussion:

• Sunday: Age 0-10
• Monday: Age 11-20
• Tuesday: Age 21-30
• Wednesday: Age 31- 40
• Thursday: Age 41-50

And so on… With each of us now living longer, the days in the model may not translate as well but you get the point, I’m sure. Whichever day of the week it is for us, if our health allows us, it’s never too late to focus on some aspect of self development.